St. Mary’s City, MD – There’s a local effort now underway to get Pope Francis to add St. Mary’s County to the itinerary of his trip to the United State in September. Rector John Ball of Trinity Episcopal Church in St. Mary’s City is leading the effort which has the support of the Commissioners of St. Mary’s County.
Why St. Mary’s County and more specifically St. Mary’s City? Father Ball explained in a letter to the commissioners: “There are many elements of our local history that would justify a papal visit: the Pope’s interest in ecumenism, St. Mary’s City being the birthplace of religious tolerance; the first Catholic settlement in the United States; and the Jesuit connection.”
Father Ball has enlisted the help of Rep. Steny Hoyer. Ball wrote to the commissioners: “Mr. Hoyer seemed enthusiastic about the idea. He told me he thought it would take approximately 15-20 minutes to get the Pontiff here from DC by helicopter.”
The commissioners talked about the idea at their Feb. 3 meeting and sent a letter to Father Ball expressing support for the effort. Commissioner Tom Jarboe (R-District 1) introduced the subject at the meeting and will serve as a point of contact for anyone who wants to get involved in making it happen.
Father Ball said, “My sense is while a Papal visit to Southern Maryland would certainly raise the profiles of Historic St. Mary’s City, St. Mary’s College of Maryland, Trinity Episcopal Church, St. Cecelia’s Parish, and the Patuxent River Naval Air Station in the nation and the world, and it would likely bring considerable amount of revenue to the hotels, restaurants and other merchants, it would incur some significant costs as well.”
It was announced this week that Pope Francis will address a joint session of Congress as part of the trip, the first Pontiff to do so. The Pope will also visit Philadelphia and New York. In Philadelphia he will attend the World Meeting of Families organized by the Catholic Church.
Contact Dick Myers at news@thebaynet.com